ABB wins orders of over $300 million for world’s first 1,100 kV UHVDC power link in China

Switzerland: 1,100 kV UHVDC power link has the capacity to transmit 12,000 MW of electric energy over 3,000 kilometres.

Transformers Magazine has reported earlier about this project, which will set new world records for voltage, transmission capacity and distance with the installation of 1,100 kV transformers which will secure the Changji-Guquan link the transmission of 12,000 MW of electric energy spanning over 3,000 kilometres.

ABB has been granted over a $300 million deal to supply equipment for the world’s first 1,100 kV direct current transmission link. The deal was concluded in the second quarter of 2016.

The Changji-Guquan UHVDC link will transmit power from the Xinjiang region in the Northwest, to Anhui province in eastern China. The link can transmit 12,000 MW of electricity, which is a 50 percent increase in transmission capacity when comparing it with the 800 kV UHVDC links that are currently used. The transmission distance will rise from around 2,000 km to over 3,000 km. This will further improve the incorporation of remote renewables and thus expand distances of transmission and enable a more interconnected grid.

ABB will supply converter transformers, bushings and tap changers, HVDC converter valves, DC circuit breakers, wall bushings and capacitors and also provide a system design support. The transformers will be among the most powerful in the world, meeting the most stringent performance, reliability and safety standards. Each transformer weighs 800 tonnes, measuring 32 meters in length. ABB’s transformer manufacturing and testing facility in Chongqing as well as the local HVDC engineering and technology centre will be actively involved in the delivery and execution of the project.

As Transformers Magazine reported earlier, Siemens will supply 1,100 kV converter transformers and other equipment for the same project.

“The expansive geography and increased demand over the last decade have prompted the build-up of UHV capacity to transmit larger amounts of power over greater distances with minimum losses,” said Claudio Facchin, President of ABB’s Power Grids division.

UHVDC transmission is an advancement of HVDC, a technology developed over 60 years ago. In 2010 SGCC put into commercial operation the Xiangjiaba-Shanghai project, the world’s first 800 kV UHVDC link. A few years later, ABB and Siemens successfully developed and tested 1,100kV converter transformer technology.